Abstract
The aim of this paper is to investigate the mediating effect of opportunity confidence (OC) on the relationship between social norms (SNs) and decision to engage in entrepreneurial action (EA). The sample size includes prospective entrepreneurs engaged in the field of Information and Communications Technology (ICT) in science and technology parks in Iran. This research uses the longitudinal survey method. Research findings from the structural equation modeling (SEM) do not confirm the mediating role of OC. However, SNs have a significant positive effect on OC, which increases the likelihood of entrepreneurial action. The paper ends with a discussion of results and practical implications.
Highlights
The entrepreneurial journey hinges on the dynamic and multiplicative process of action development under the conditions of uncertainty [1,2]
This section aims to develop a set of hypotheses on how individuals allocate their sociocognitive resources to entrepreneurship and what is the role of social norms in this regard? The effects of SNs in Iran are examined, as an emerging economy in the Middle East
These findings suggest that social norms may be important predictors of behavioral beliefs, but they do not have a particular effect on entrepreneurship per se
Summary
The entrepreneurial journey hinges on the dynamic and multiplicative process of action development under the conditions of uncertainty [1,2]. The way entrepreneurs interact with their close social network can induce a large impact on the need and motivation for understanding what they intend to offer in the market as the entrepreneur’s societal environment plays a strong role in shaping behavior [16] and translating ideas into interpretations [3,17] The core of this process in value creation is that an individual increases his/her attention toward a new value idea that he or she senses at the time of generation, and refines the opportunity insight [3]. The action view has received much attention from entrepreneurship researchers, little is known about how this assessment process works, i.e., the interplay between endogenous and exogenous factors To address this important gap, the relationship between social norms and entrepreneurial action is examined and it is assumed that opportunity confidence mediates with this relationship. The outcome of this research can have important implications for both theory and public policy matters in the country and similar contexts in other Middle Eastern countries, including neighboring Pakistan and Afghanistan
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